Behind the Pixel: Google’s First Real Threat to Apple’s iPhone

Post by richardboegli » Tue, Oct 04, 2016, 8:50 PM UTC

tomtheelder wrote: post #400

010a wrote: post #343

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Its not an $80 VR headset. The thing that goes around your head is $80, but the expensive part is that phone which you put in the front, which needs a 1440p display (minimum) to avoid the screen-door effect.

If we reject the $80 VR thing lets make it $880 or so, including the cost of a phone. That's still a lot less than the ~$3000 it costs to get a legitimate VR headset plus a gaming PC. Add onto that the fact that virtually everyone is going to own a smartphone anyway, and you can basically eliminate the cost of the phone in there. It's definitely value VR.

Post by maherbeg » Tue, Oct 04, 2016, 8:52 PM UTC

amelius wrote: post #357

mikestew wrote: post #13

And yet not a single hard detail in the article as to why the headline might be true. For going on ten years we've seen the "iPhone killers" come and go, and this article does nothing to tell me why this time it will be different. Perhaps because it won't be. Of what very few details the article outlines, they just go on about nifty hardware. Have we not learned by now that cool hardware still sucks when hamstrung by…

> Now, Google is no Samsung, but they're a long way from Apple [...] on the UX front. Well, iTunes sucks, and it is pivotal in the Apple ecosystem.

Post by julianpye » Tue, Oct 04, 2016, 8:53 PM UTC

diminish wrote: post #365

julianpye wrote: post #354

Last week we tried to launch an Android-first app at a major startup conference with 5000 visitors. 95% of the visitors (startups, entrepreneurs, investors, executives) had iPhones. We later confirmed this by looking at the network stats and couldn't believe it. In a country where Android statistically has 80% marketshare. The Android users loved the product, but we failed because we couldn't generate word-of-mouth.…

Actually that shows a big opportunity exists for startups in Android space. Clearly the startup world is not where the customers are due to various reasons. Go where the customers are, observe what they are doing and make something they can use. I truly see a big opportunity. Launching at startup events is wrong unless your customers are them.

Post by weisser » Tue, Oct 04, 2016, 8:54 PM UTC

mhomde wrote: post #478

erikpukinskis wrote: post #367

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Honestly, in terms of staff UI design cred Android is in better place than iOS right now. With the Sidekick, PalmOS, and then Material Design, Matías Duarte has been consistently at the forefront of mobile UI design. Jony Ive is probably the most brilliant consumer electronics hardware designer in the world, but I have yet to see any indication that he has any idea how to lead a platform UI design project. I had issu…

iOS is in a tough position, the road of incremental changes is coming to an end. The icon-based home screen is showing it's age and will need a revolution rather than an evolution. You can kinda see Apple dipping it toes into the widget arena with the notifications area, yet they're probably hesitant to remake the whole home screen and risk alienating their current users. Tech savvy people won't mind a new home scree…

Post by viraptor » Tue, Oct 04, 2016, 8:57 PM UTC

radiorental wrote: post #412

livingparadox wrote: post #299

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I use the Nexus, which runs stock android by default. This new pixel phone will probably also do so, being a direct (ish) google phone. I think its because if the cruft 3rd party OEMs have been adding that google has been making these phones. So, yes, you can buy a device with stock android. It just has to be a google phone, not a 3rd party for the most part.

> I use the Nexus, which runs stock android by default. Is this strictly true if google bakes their apps in (play music etc.)